Pallet for annular articles



June 2, 1954 E. c. YERKEY ETAL I PALLET FOR ANNULR ARTICLES Filed Nov. 24, 1961 United States Patent O 3,135,227 lALLET FOR ANNULAR ARTICLES Elton Clyde Yerkey, Tuscaloosa, Ralph Eli Moore, Jr.,

Northport, and Harold Glen Brewer, Tuscaloosa, Ala.,

assignors to The B. F. Goodrich Company, New York,

N.Y., a corporation of New York Filed Nov. 24, 1961, Ser. No. 154,530 3 Claims. (Cl. 10S-53) This invention relates to a pallet for annular articles and, more particularly, to a pallet for supporting annular articles in a plurality of adjacent stacks with the articles disposed in horizontal positions in the stacks.

Lift trucks are now widely used in factories and warehouses for handling materials and to facilitate this mode of material handling the materials are supported by pallets which can be readily lifted and transported by the trucks. When the material to be thus handled is a plurality of annular objects, it has been found most convenient to dispose these articles in vertical stacks upon the pallets with the articles in each stack extending horizontally and pre- Vented from lateral displacement by one or more vertically extending supports. Pallets of this type, as heretofore employed, have been difficult to store when the vertically extending supports or posts are left in place. When attempts have been made to make 4these posts or supports removable, the posts are frequently not sufiiciently stable to withstand the stresses to which the pallets are placed in use and the separate posts are frequently mislaid and/ or present problems with respect to storage thereof.

The principal object `of this invention is to provide an improved pallet for annular objects wherein the vertically extending article supporting members or posts are rigidly supported in use and yet may be readily removed for storage.

A further object ofthe invention is to provide an improved pallet as defined in the preceding paragraph wherein the body of the pallet is so formed as to provide storage space for the article supporting posts when these are removed from their vertically extending positions.

A still further object of the invention is to provide an improved pallet for annular objects provided with removable article supporting posts which may be placed in horizontal position for storage within the body of the pallet and yet have suflcient rigidity in article supporting position to permit vertical stacking of one pallet upon the other with the said posts supporting the supeiposed pallets.

Other objects and advantages of lthe invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of the presently preferred embodiment of the invention which is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, forming a part of this application, and in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the pallet with two of the article supporting posts disposed in storage positions and two of the posts in article supporting positions and with annular articles supported by the pallet indicated in dot-dash lines; and Y FIG. 2 is a transverse sectional view taken substantially on the line 2-2 of FIG. 1.

The pallet illustrated in the drawing comprises a rectangular imperforate base upon which a plurality of spaced top members 11 are supported by transversely extending brace members 12. In the illustrated embodiment, the base, top members and bracing members are all formed of wood with the parts secured together by nails, screws, or the like, in a manner such that the two outermost of the bracing members 12 extend adjacent opposite edges of the base 10. The bracing members 12 are spaced laterally from each other and are disposed in parallel relationship so that the fork of a lift truck may enter between the top and base and between the bracing members for lifting and transportation `of the pallet.

3,135,227 Patented June 2, 1964 ICC A plurality of post support members 13 are mounted upon the base member 10 in positions such that they are accessible vertically through the openings between the top members 11. In the illustrated embodiment, the post support members 13 comprise a flange portion 14 having suitable openings for fastening means, such as nails, screws, or bolts, by which the support members are secured to the base. Each flange 14 is provided with a post supporting portion of socket 15 in the form of a short length of tubular metal secured to and extending from the flange to an elevation such that the upper surface of the socket is substantially coplanar with the upper surfaces of the top members 11. The post support members 13 may be standard flanged pipe sockets but for greater rigidity they are preferably formed by welding suitable lengths of metal pipe to rectangular metal plates of greater lateral dimensions than the flanges of standard pipe sockets. t

Each of the post support members 13 is adapted to receive an end of an article supporting post 16. In the preferred form, these posts 16 are metal pipes which have diameters such as to provide a sliding fit within the sockets 15. The lengths of the posts or pipes 16 are slightly less lthan the distance between the outermost bracing members 12 of the pallet. The bracing members intermediate the two outermost or edge ones thereof have their upper surfaces notched, adjacent to but spaced from both ends, as indicated at 17, with the notches of sufficient dimension so that two of the pipes 16 may be received therein in side-by-side horizontal position, as indicated in the drawing, with the sides of the thus received pipes coplanar with or below the upper surfaces of the top members 11.

A specic'example of a pallet constructed in accordance with this invention had a dimension of 5 x 5' x 5" with the base, top and bracing members all formed of wood. The post supporting members were formed from 4 inch lengths of 11/2 inch pipe each welded to a metal plate 8" x 8 x 1A with the plates drilled near each corner to receive bolts by which the plates were fastened to the bottom or base of the pallet. The posts 16 were 50 inch lengths of 11A inch pipe and the notches 17 in the bracing members were l inch deep and 4 inches long. Such a pallet permitted the reception thereon of four stacks of vehicle tires, one tire 18 for each of two such stacks being indicated by dot-dash lines in FIG. l.

Pallets constructed as illustrated and described may be stacked vertically upon one another without injury to the stacks of annular articles thereon since the imperforate base lil of one pallet may rest upon the upper ends of the posts 16 which are supported with suiicient rigidity to permit such stacking. When the pallets are not in use, they can be stored in spaces not exceeding the over-all dimension of the thickness thereof by removing the posts 16 from the sockets and placing them in horizontal positions within the notches 17. This not only conserves storage space but provides a readily available place for retaining the posts with each pallet so that the proper number and size of posts are immediately available for use when the pallet is to be placed in service. The posts may be readily placed and removed as desired by hand and require no fastening means. However, if desired, the sockets and adjacent ends of the pipes may be provided with cooperating screw threads.

rI`he invention has been described in detail with particular reference to the presently preferred embodiment and a specific example of that embodiment has been given. The invention is not, however, limited to the specific materials or dimensions herein set forth by Way of example, and variations may also be made in the arrangement of the components while preserving the novel features of the improved construction.

Having thus described the invention, we claim:

1. A pallet for vehicle tires comprising:

(a) a normally horizontally extending imperforate base,

(b) a top formed of parallel laterally spaced members,

(c) a plurality of Vlaterally spaced bracing members extending at right angles to said top members and rigidly interconnecting said top and base,

(d) a plurality of support members each having a vertically extending socket portion secured to said base in locations such that the said socket portions are accessible through the spaces betweenv said top members,

(e) a plurality of elongated posts each removably positionable in one of said socket members 'and when ,so positioned extending vertically above the said top members for reception in the central openings of vehicle tires,

(f) the said support members being laterally spaced from .each other andthe edges of the pallet such that, Whenthe posts are`positioned in the sockets of the support members, a plurality of vehicletires -may be supportedupon said pallet in a plurality of y stacks with the tires in each stack-horizontally disposed and having one of said posts extending therethrough, and Y (g) the said bracing members intermediate the edges of thepallet having the portions thereof intermediate the said top members notched for receptionof said posts in positions parallel'to the top members when the said posts are removed from said socket portions.

2. A- pallet afi-defined in claim 1 wherein:

(a) said base, top members, and bracing members are yformed of Wood,

(b) said support members are metal, and

(c) said `post -members are metal pipes the length of each of Which is less thanvthe dimension of said pallet transversely of said bracing members.

3. A pallet for supporting thereon a plurality of vehicleftires in adjacent stacks with the tiresin each stack disposed in superposed horizontal positions, said pallet comprising:

(a) a rectangular normally horizontally extending base,

(b) a plurality of bracing members attached to said base in laterally spaced parallel relationship with the two outermost of said vbracing members extending along opposite edges of said-base,

(c) a plurality of laterally spaced top'members extending transversely of said bracing members upon the upper surfaces of the latter and secured to said bracing members,

(d) a plurality of angedfpipe sockets secured to said base in locations such that the socket portions of said members are vertically accessible through 'the Yspaces betweensaid topfmembe'rs,

V(e) a plurality of elongatedpipes eachremovablypositionable in one of said 'socketsrand when so positioned extending vertically above thes aid top members for reception in the central openings of vehicles tires,

(f)` the said socket members being laterally spaced from each other and from the edges of said-pallet such that when the pipes are Ypositioned in thesockets a plurality of vehicle'tires may be supported upon said pallet in a plurality ofstacks with the tires 'in each stack horizontally ldisposed and having one of said `pipes extending therethrough, and

(g) the said bracing members intermediate the edges of the pallet having'the portions thereof-accessible between the spaces lintermediate said top members -notched for reception of said pipesin positions parallel to the top members when the said -pipes are removed from said socket portions.

References Cited'in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Shrader July 3, 1928 `Lilienfeld May 3l, 1949 Budd Apr, 29, 1952 Higgins Jan. 27, 1959 

1. A PALLET FOR VEHICLE TIRES COMPRISING: (A) A NORMALLY HORIZONTALLY EXTENDING IMPERFORATE BASE, (B) A TOP FORMED OF PARALLEL LATERALLY SPACED MEMBERS, (C) A PLURALITY OF LATERALLY SPACED BRACING MEMBERS EXTENDING AT RIGHT ANGLES TO SAID TOP MEMBERS AND RIGIDLY INTERCONNECTING SAID TOP AND BASE, (D) A PLURALITY OF SUPPORT MEMBERS EACH HAVING A VERTICALLY EXTENDING SOCKET PORTION SECURED TO SAID BASE IN LOCATIONS SUCH THAT THE SAID SOCKET PORTIONS ARE ACCESSIBLE THROUGH THE SPACES BETWEEN SAID TOP MEMBERS, (E) A PLURALITY OF ELONGATED POSTS EACH REMOVABLY POSITIONABLE IN ONE OF SAID SOCKET MEMBERS AND WHEN SO POSITIONED EXTENDING VERTICALLY ABOVE THE SAID TOP MEMBERS FOR RECEPTION IN THE CENTRAL OPENINGS OF VEHICLE TIRES, (F) THE SAID SUPPORT MEMBERS BEING LATERALLY SPACED FROM EACH OTHER AND THE EDGES OF THE PALLET SUCH THAT, WHEN THE POSTS ARE POSITIONED IN THE SOCKETS OF THE SUPPORT MEMBERS, A PLURALITY OF VEHICLE TIRES MAY BE SUPPORTED UPON SAID PALLET IN A PLURALITY OF STACKS WITH THE TIRES IN EACH STACK HORIZONTALLY DISPOSED AND HAVING ONE OF SAID POSTS EXTENDING THERETHROUGH, AND (G) THE SAID BRACING MEMBERS INTERMEDIATE THE EDGES OF THE PALLET HAVING THE PORTIONS THEREOF INTERMEDIATE THE SAID TOP MEMBERS NOTCHED FOR RECEPTION OF SAID POSTS IN POSITIONS PARALLEL TO THE TOP MEMBERS WHEN THE SAID POSTS ARE REMOVED FROM SAID SOCKET PORTIONS. 